Petit lac Lepage in Mauricie: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  The Mauricie entry here is Petit lac Lepage, in Quebec. It stands 472 metres above sea level. At 3 hectares it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. It is a small entry by Mauricie standards. 48 km away sits La Tuque, the nearest town. The nearest city of size is Saguenay, 121 km away. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Petit lac Lepage

  The records we hold are silent on depth, so plan to find it yourself. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Records held for Mauricie cover northern pike, brook trout and walleye. County records show what lives in the area; the local agency holds the water-by-water list. Petit lac Lepage responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 17°C; by January the average is down near -16°C. The freeze holds for the better part of the year. Ice-out usually falls in early May, and the weeks after it fish hardest. Expect the water usable from around early May until roughly mid November. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. Plan around that when you fish Petit lac Lepage.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Should this one be busy, Lac Lepage is 0.6 km off. What applies at Petit lac Lepage may have changed since it was mapped.